In his 2009 predictions to FOLIO:, Bob Sacks, president and publisher of Precision Media Group, said that this would be “the year that e-paper finally got the respect and understanding it deserves. The introduction in early 2009 of the Plastic Logic full sized, touch screen, e-reader will be the forerunner of this recognition.”While in the past e-readers like Amazon’s Kindle and Sony’s Reader have been primarily focused on book publishing, Hearst Corporation recently announced that it will debut a magazine e-reader later this year.The first American magazine publisher to directly tap the digital reader market, Hearst is encouraging others to license technology so that they, too, can deliver digital content. Hearst is looking at a design better suited for reading magazines and newspapers than the book-focused Kindle. Those close to Hearst’s e-reader project say that the device is light, with a large screen to make digital reading as comfortable as the print products, at 8.5×11 inches versus the Kindle’s six-inch screen. Mountain View, California-based Plastic Logic also has plans to launch a new electronic reading device in 2010, and through a partnership with digital vendor Zinio will provide magazine content.It’s been suggested that, if successful, an e-reader could someday replace print magazines and save of approximately 50 percent of the expense involved by cutting paper, printing and delivery costs. e-reader digital screens also save power by displaying changeable text and images.On Esquire’s blog, editor-in-chief David Granger wrote that he is hopeful that new electronic reading devices would save not only the suffering newspaper and magazine industries, but reintroduce people to the pleasures of reading in general: “As electronic readers improve, as they add graphics and design and, eventually, color, even more people will opt for the more sustained, contemplative experiences more often.”VITAL STATS: If successful, an e-reader could someday replace print magazines with savings of approximately 50 percent for paper, printing and delivery costs.read more

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Javed PatwariInspector general of police (IGP) Javed Patwari on Thursday said the preparations of law enforcement agencies for the 11th parliamentary elections are better than any time in the past, reports UNB.”If the environment, now prevailing in the country, continues we can present a peaceful election to the nation,” he said.The police chief came up with the remarks while talking to reporters at the city’s Nirbachan Bhaban.”We came here today to inform the chief election commission and the election commissioners about our plan for the election. It was part of our regular meeting,” he said.Brushing aside the complaint of Jatiya Oikya Front that police department is not under the EC now, the IGP said the complaint totally untrue. “The whole administration, including the police, is now working under the election commission,” he said.Javed Patwari did not respond when asked about the attack on Oikya Front chief Kamal Hossain.Additional IGP Mokhlesur Rahman, DMP commissioner Asaduzzaman Mia, DMP Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime Unit Monirul Islam were also present.read more

Popular on Variety Twitter disclosed that it discovered a bug in its system for storing passwords — which left them exposed in an internal log — and its top technology exec said that “out of an abundance of caution” users should consider changing their passwords.Twitter shares dropped as much as 2.7% in after-hours trading Thursday after the social-media company disclosed the bug.In a blog post, Twitter CTO Parag Agrawal said the company had fixed the glitch and that its internal investigation “shows no indication of breach or misuse by anyone.”“We are very sorry this happened,” Agrawal wrote. “We recognize and appreciate the trust you place in us, and are committed to earning that trust every day.”Twitter didn’t say how many users’ passwords were being stored in clear text. For the first quarter of 2018, it reported an average monthly active user base of 336 million accounts worldwide. Twitter users are able to change their password on the password settings page, available at this link. Agrawal also pointed users to Twitter’s two-factor authentication login settings, which sends a six-digit code to a user’s phone number that is required to log in to the service in addition to username and password.Twitter uses an industry-standard “hashing” mechanism to mask passwords; that replaces the actual password with a “random set of numbers and letters that are stored in Twitter’s system,” Agrawal explained.However, the bug in Twitter’s password-storage system caused user passwords to be stored before completing the hashing process. “We found this error ourselves, removed the passwords, and are implementing plans to prevent this bug from happening again,” Agrawal wrote.In February 2016, Twitter disclosed that it had discovered and fixed a bug in its password-recovery systems within 24 hours after identifying it. That bug, which affected almost 10,000 accounts, didn’t expose passwords but “had the potential to expose the email address and phone number associated with a small number of accounts,” according to the company. In the past, several high-profile Twitter accounts have been hijacked by hackers — including those of Netflix, HBO, Marvel, and even Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey himself. Those incidents don’t appear to be related the bug Twitter just disclosed. It’s also worth noting that Twitter isn’t alone in being susceptible to account hacks: For example, last summer someone broke into the Instagram account of Selena Gomez and posted a nude pic of ex-boyfriend Justin Bieber. ×Actors Reveal Their Favorite Disney PrincessesSeveral actors, like Daisy Ridley, Awkwafina, Jeff Goldblum and Gina Rodriguez, reveal their favorite Disney princesses. Rapunzel, Mulan, Ariel,Tiana, Sleeping Beauty and Jasmine all got some love from the Disney stars.More VideosVolume 0%Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcutsKeyboard Shortcutsplay/pauseincrease volumedecrease volumeseek forwardsseek backwardstoggle captionstoggle fullscreenmute/unmuteseek to %SPACE↑↓→←cfm0-9Next UpJennifer Lopez Shares How She Became a Mogul04:350.5x1x1.25×1.5x2xLive00:0002:1502:15read more

Kolkata: The Kolkata Municipal Corporation carried out a special drive to combat dengue in ward 69 in south Kolkata on Friday.Sukhdeb Chakraborty, local Trinamool Congress councillor along with senior civic officials of Health, Building and Soil Waste Management (SWM) departments were present during the drive. The KMC teams visited houses on Beltola Road and Ballygunge Circular Road where people who had dengue in 2018 are residing. The teams talked to the residents and requested them to follow the dos and don’ts suggested by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation. Also Read – Bose & Gandhi: More similar than apart, says Sugata BoseThe teams examined the overhead tanks and underground reservoirs and visited the terrace of some houses. The senior officials urged the owners of the houses where garbage was found in the terrace to clear them immediately. “The house owners fail to understand that even an used plastic cup that contains water can serve as a potential mosquito breeding ground,” senior officials said. The drive had tremendous impact on the area as the residents lauded the effort of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation to reduce the number of dengue cases. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has instructed all civic bodies to take steps to control dengue in their respective areas. She had presided over a high-level meeting in Nabanna where she instructed the senior state government officials to ensure that the water at the metro rail construction sites are cleaned as stagnate water may serve as a major mosquito breeding ground. As a follow up mayor Firhad Hakim held a meeting at the KMC headquarters on Wednesday. Senior officials of the central and state government establishments were present at the meeting. The KMC will conduct anti-larvae drive in three phases. The ongoing phase will continue till June while the second phase will start in July and continue till October while the follow up phase will be November and December.read more

Register Now » September 25, 2017 6 min read Growing a business sometimes requires thinking outside the box. Free Webinar | Sept. 9: The Entrepreneur’s Playbook for Going Global The rapid growth of technology is transforming businesses every day, and no technology is more poised to revolutionize nearly every industry in the next decade than artificial intelligence (AI).Related: Why Small Business Should Be Paying Attention to Artificial IntelligenceSince 1956, when it was introduced as an academic discipline, AI has generated both optimism and disappointment. However, it has been on a relatively upward projection since 2000, finding particular vigor in leveraging statistical approaches to machine learning, which in turn has rendered many previously used tools and schools of thought obsolete.As the field of AI continues to innovate, and machines and systems become more capable, technological solutions that used to be considered as futuristic AI, like optical character recognition, have become routine — effectively losing their “AI” status. Other technologies yet to be conquered — like driverless cars, and the artificial re-creation of human speech — are still being developed as AI.Many futurists have talked about the dangerous possibility that AI machines will eventually take control of humanity and destroy the world. Even though most of these prognostications mix speculation and superstition, this school of thought has persevered — consider the news of some successful Turing Test exercises.However, many AI researchers and scientists have refuted this stance, saying that, ultimately, AI is simply a very effective tool for processing, analyzing and comprehending massive amounts of actual human data.One thing is certain: Direct or indirect AI adaptation for businesses and individuals will continue to proliferate. And the journey is going to be exciting, as we continue to unravel what is possible with this promising technology. AI-based solutions are already being used to tackle pressing problems in business to change the business world. Here are a few ways it’s doing that:1. Making truly autonomous processes possible While most AI technology for businesses still needs a substantial degree of human supervision and intervention, companies are working to develop technology with human-like cognitive ability, enabling AI systems to truly be trusted to take on autonomous tasks with minimal supervision.Related: 4 Crucial Roles of Artificial Intelligence in Entrepreneurship TodayThis technology has long been a focus of research in the world’s most cutting-edge research programs. Southern California AI disrupter Beyond Limits, for example, is adapting technology utilized by NASA to perform something like the unmanned space mission to Mars. These types of AI solutions can tackle complex problems in energy, transportation and medicine, by offering lightweight AI that isn’t reliant on massive infrastructure.Such AI has the processing speeds and cognitive ability that can parallel an actual human agent’s reasoning and problem-solving process.2. Ushering in the era of “big intelligence”The convergence of better programming through high performance computing (HPC) and big data means that computers can now crunch a massive amount of data and use AI programs to learn from and process that data into useful, actionable business insights.Dubbed by hardware companies like PSSC Labs as “big Intelligence”, the servers and storage harnessing the power of these new computing platforms are allowing companies to process consumer and market data coming from an astonishing array of sources.Real-time or near real-time processing means businesses can keep constantly up to date with better information, better recommendations and more predictive power, to optimize business decisions.3.Optimizing timingTiming is an important factor for any business, as there is a natural ebb and flow determined by many factors, including location, season, holidays and adjacent industries. Grasping this cadence is essential for business owners to succeed.However, even years of experience doesn’t guarantee that any business can accurately assess staff, stock and other timing-related needs accurately. A sudden boom in a particular city, for example, might prompt more traffic to certain businesses than they can handle. Poor weather could dampen the holiday rush in tourist towns, resulting in lower staff needs.Many AI companies are targeting these issues by integrating services to help business owners take advantage of available historic and emerging data, and optimize their business timing, to ensure that they maximize resources when they need it, and minimize waste when they don’t.For example, Ximble is looking to roll out features within its scheduling platform that use AI and machine learning to analyze traffic and retail data for businesses to create automated and optimized staff schedules. Similar features will likely emerge from inventory-management companies, as well as delivery, fleet management, and other similar business SaaS providers.4. Automating lead generation The cost of customer acquisition via lead generation is a critical part of every business. For many businesses, customer acquisition requires extensive cold-calling, trial and error and exploration of multiple channels. Artificial intelligence promises to not only increase the relevance of lead-generation campaigns, but also dramatically reduce their cost, in both time and money, by automating and learning from simple user inputs.Related: The Growth of Artificial Intelligence in Ecommerce (Infographic)By incorporating tag words, a rudimentary search for leads can automatically be implemented. Sugarbot is one of a handful of startups trying to crack this code. As the user within the business makes relevant selections from the results, a lead-generation system incorporating AI can learn, make adjustments and produce continually better and more relevant results within seconds.What takes a sales associate days or months can be achieved in mere hours or days. Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.read more

FORT WORTH — Former Virtuoso chairman Jesse Upchurch has passed away at the age of 93, leaving behind a legacy that includes a 50-year career in travel.The visionary leader passed away on Feb. 26, reports Virtuoso, who hailed Upchurch for “changing the way many experience destinations from Mexico to Africa to India”. Upchurch co-founded Virtuoso in 1986 with his son, current Chairman and CEO Matthew D. Upchurch.“My father was a pioneer in this business, and I am forever grateful that he introduced me to the world and this industry at such an early age,” said Matthew. “He had a nose for knowing what the luxury traveller wanted, and it wasn’t necessarily the traditional refinement found in five-star hotels or transatlantic cruise liners. He knew the world offered more than that. His insatiable curiosity about the unknown, his passion for other people and their cultures, and his tendency to question conventional wisdom with a simple ‘why not?’ opened the door for others to experience countries that were not considered tourism-friendly yet. He left his mark on this industry that he loved so much.”The elder Upchurch’s career in travel began when he invested in Vagabond Cruises, a yacht-chartering company in the Caribbean’s West Indies islands. After realizing a market existed for both adventure and luxury travel, he built the first timeshare resort in Acapulco and purchased Turismo Antonio Perez and Hotels S.A. de S.V., a travel company and international hotel representation group.With the purchase of Percival Tours in 1962, Upchurch expanded operations into more exotic locales like the south Pacific and Asia. As chairman and CEO of Percival Tours, he successfully opened up tourism in markets previously considered only for the most adventurous traveller, such as Africa and India. He’s also credited with being the first to introduce air-conditioned motorcoaches for upscale guests.Upchurch was also heavily involved in conservation efforts as a founding member of world Wildlife Fund’s 1001 Club. In addition, he was a co-founder of the U.S. Tour Operators Association where he served as chairman, CEO and president.In 2000, Upchurch was named CEO of Virtuoso and he assumed the role of chairman in 2010.The family will honor Jesse Upchurch’s memory privately, and celebrations of his life in various communities will take place in the months ahead. Details for in-memoriam gifts will follow soon. << Previous PostNext Post >> Posted by Tags: People, Virtuoso Thursday, March 1, 2018 Virtuoso says goodbye to co-founder and “visionary leader” Jesse Upchurch Travelweek Group Shareread more